The company was fined £30,000, and ordered to pay costs of £20,000 and proceeds of crime of £247,278.

Mark Watson, representing the Environment Agency (EA), said the company was operating under an exemption that allowed it to store up to 5,000 tonnes of aggregates at its site.

But the firm’s records showed that as much as 94,000 tonnes had been taken to the facility.

“In essence the company was running a waste transfer station,” Watson said. “The company turnover from the site was in excess of £500,000 and it also gained financially by not paying for permit applications and subsistence fees.”

Andrew McGee, representing Rory J Holbrook Ltd, said that it was not a deliberate breach of the law but a “negligent” one. He said the company kept consistent records and co-operated with the investigation.

The EA said the business was subject to a confiscation order to recover the avoided tipping and permit fees and the money made from selling aggregates from the treatment of waste.

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